//------------------------------//
// Twilight Sparkle's Mind is a Curious Place 
// Story: A Changeling in Friendship 
// by Dreams of Ponies 
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I opened my eyes in the dream world. A crowd of cheering ponies stood before me. All which were facing a large stage, looking up at the  ponies speaking on top of it. 

"We are here today, to present the Golden Starswirl award to Princess Twilight Sparkle, for her work in subatomic magical theory," said an old grey stallion. He gestured to some pony off stage, and then Twilight Sparkle walked across to the podium. She was wearing the proudest smile that I've ever seen on a pony. The stallion speaker held out a golden statue, which was a small bearded figure holding a scroll, for Twilight to accept. 

Twilight took the statue in her magic, before stepping up to the podium, and then leaning into the microphone, "Thank you, everypony, I couldn't be prouder than I am now." She smiled at the crowd, taking a breath, "I want to say that I couldn't have done this without the love and support of all my friends, and of course my mentor, Princess Celestia," Twilight said, waving to a group of ponies in the front of the crowd. 

The group stood and cheered for her, before they began trotting up to the front of the stage to give Twilight a hug. The Princess of the Sun herself flew up to meet her student in an embrace. Twilight cried happily, tears flowing down as the audience stomped and cheered for the pair. Ponies are so emotional some times, but then if they weren't, I would probably starve.

The dream was pretty standard, if a bit grandiose. Twilight seemed to have the admiration and friendship of most of the town, as well as being very close to her friends. This wasn't really news to me however, so then I turned to leave the auditorium. If I wanted to understand Twilight Sparkle, I would need to dive deeper into her mind. 

I walked outside, the light of a daytime Ponyville blinding me initially. I shielded my eyes so I could look around to see what the dream world had created for me to explore. The town itself looked realistically similar, compared to some of the crazier dreams I've infiltrated. Also, I didn't usually hear orchestral music to set the theme.

"Hello, there," a strange voice said from above me. 

I must of jumped at least several meters in the air in surprise. I looked around, until I spotted a strange creature playing a tune upon a piano. The instrument itself was floating upside down in the air, its small stool tied to it with a rope. The pianist was a strange fusion of several creatures, and was looking down at me, while still playing with ease.

"Um, hello. Who are you, if I might ask?" I said, completely unsure about why the strange creature could see me.

"Who, Me?" the odd apparition said, "Why, I'm Discord,  Master of Chaos, and all of that, or at least I'm the dream representation that our young Twilight has created for herself."

"I'm surprised that you're even able to see me, or that you're this self-aware for that matter," I said honestly. 

"Well, I'm still Discord, so rules don't really apply to me," he said, turning to face me fully, his hands popping off to continue playing.

"So, I'm guessing that you're another of Twilight Sparkle's friends?" 

"You could say that," Dream-Discord said, "and you could also say that I know why a certain changeling is here, lurking inside my dear friend's mind."

I stared at him, considering my current options. I could try to outrun him, but he probably knew this place better than me.

"So, you're here to stop me then, right?" I asked, watching him disappear and reappear in front of me.

"Why would I do that?" he asked, "I would be ruining a perfectly good friendship problem," he finished, patting my head, which pushed my face towards the ground.

"Huh? What friendship problem?" I said, looking up in question, only to discover that Discord was gone, as was his piano. "The sooner I get this over with, the better," I said to myself.

I continued my search, looking at each building as I passed. I needed something where Twilight would keep information, or her secrets. I remember what I had seen inside her home, and thought about all the books lying around in her bedroom. She seemed to be very studious and educated, so I thought of an easy place to start. 

I guess I'll check the library. 

I moved along, now looking for something that would resemble a book repository before spotting a building I didn't remember seeing in Ponyville on my journey here. A tall tree, which had been carved out as a home, stood before me. 

This kind of thing could only be real in a dream, I mean, really, how could that tree still be alive?

The sign beside the literal tree house read, "Ponyville Golden Oaks Library." I tapped on the door, which then opened with a creak. The inside seemed quite a bit larger from where I was standing, which was common for dreams, but something about it seemed very familiar to me.

I looked around at the rows and rows of books, all settled neatly upon their shelves, waiting to be read. I walked down the rows, peering at the titles as I walked past. I past various sections of information, containing hundreds of topics. This pony sure did a lot of reading, if her mind was this full of books. The specific book I was looking for would probably be under the letter 'F', if Twilight's mind is as organized as I thought it would be.

"Favorite Fictions, Favorite Foods, Fedoras, ah, here it is, Friendships," I said, pulling the last one of the shelf. I was surprised to see the bookcase slide over in response, revealing a small stairway leading deeper into the library, as well as deeper into Twilight's mind.

I descended the staircase, small torches lighting my way, before I came upon an unusual sight: five pedestals were placed on the outside of a circle, each with its own book on top of a red cushion. I stepped forward, eyeing each book, as well as noticing their purpose. Running down each pedestal was a small line of faint magic, connecting in their center. They formed a magical lock, which, by logical conclusion, was most likely protecting something precious. This was Twilight's way of protecting her secrets and doubts, her friends becoming her mental barrier against negative thoughts.

That's essentially what I am: a negative thought. 

I walked forward, carefully examining each book, which bore the same symbols as the throne room's chairs. So, in order to gain access to Twilight's darkest secrets, I first had to deal with her friends. I would have to enter each book, which would act as a stored memory, and remove whatever was linking it to this barrier.

This is probably the best mental defense I have ever seen. 

I walked around the books, trying to decide what would be the ideal one with which to start. I looked them over slowly, thinking that I might want to start with the butterfly book. It looked innocent enough, being a mix of butter yellow and pink. I walked over to it, and opened the pages to enter the specific memory Twilight had assigned to it.

The world flashed before me, and I was drawn deep into its grasp.